Eleven ways a leader can serve people

Mark 10:35-45 NIV

“Then James and John, the sons of Zebedee, came to him. “Teacher,” they said, “we want you to do for us whatever we ask.” “What do you want me to do for you?” he asked. They replied, “Let one of us sit at your right and the other at your left in your glory.”“You don’t know what you are asking,” Jesus said. “Can you drink the cup I drink or be baptized with the baptism I am baptized with?”“We can,” they answered.Jesus said to them, “You will drink the cup I drink and be baptized with the baptism I am baptized with,  but to sit at my right or left is not for me to grant. These places belong to those for whom they have been prepared.”When the ten heard about this, they became indignant with James and John.   Jesus called them together and said, “You know that those who are regarded as rulers of the Gentiles lord it over them, and their high officials exercise authority over them.   Not so with you. Instead, whoever wants to become great among you must be your servant,  and whoever wants to be first must be slave of all.  For even the Son of Man did not come to be served, but to serve, and to give his life as a ransom for many.”

Eleven ways a leader can serve people (after all, Jesus said that is how to be a great leader.)

#1 – Adopt the mindset that these people work with me and not for me.

#2 – Provide enough margin for the people who serve with you to be creative and brainstorm ahead.

#3 – Make sure that the people you serve with have the resources they need to do the job they are expected to do.

#4 – Say “thank you” and “great job” A LOT instead of just pointing out all of the areas where a person came up short.

#5 – Try your best to make sure that if an area of the church is going to be impacted by a certain decision that someone from that area had input in the decision making process.

#6 – Make sure the expectations for the people you lead are both spoken and realistic.  (We cannot hold people accountable for unspoken, unrealistic expectations.)

#7 – Don’t confuse personal preferences with conviction from the Holy Spirit…if you tell the people you serve with that “God told me” then you had better be willing to bet your last Bible than you heard from the Lord!

#8 – Model what you consider to be important…in other words, when you are walking into the building and see a piece of trash on the ground…pick it up.

#9 – Listen to them!!!

#10 – Understand that your words weight 1,000 pounds…choose them carefully!

#11 – Understand that WHAT you say and HOW you say it matter…the people you serve with are human beings with hearts, minds and souls…they deserve to be treated as such.

-Perry Noble (NewSpring Church)